


Monster

by partxtimexadult



Category: Ancient Greek Religion & Lore
Genre: Greek gods, Inspired by Eros and Psyche (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Love, Other, soul
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-14
Updated: 2020-07-14
Packaged: 2021-03-05 05:08:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 760
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25268857
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/partxtimexadult/pseuds/partxtimexadult
Summary: The Greek God of Love, Eros, is cursed to never be seen by his lovely wife Psyche.
Relationships: Eros-Psyche
Kudos: 19





	Monster

> _“Adorn this girl, O king, for wedlock dread, and set her on a lofty mountain-rock. Renounce all hope that one of mortal stock can be your son-in-law, for she shall wed a fierce, barbaric, snake-like monster. He, flitting on wings aloft, makes all things smart, plaguing each moving thing with torch and dart. Why, Zeus himself must fearful be. The other gods for him their terror show, and rivers shudder, and the dark realms below.”_

Eros, the God of Love, did not have a great relationship with his Olympian fellow Apollo. They had a quarrel after the sunny boy mocked Eros’ ability to shoot. Gods being Gods, Eros vengefully pulled one of the golden arrows from his magical quiver and took aim. In no time, the projectile hit its target. Apollo, the God of Archery had been affected by one of Eros’ love arrows. A second arrow flew, hitting a damsel named Daphne, though this time it was different. The woman had been struck by a different arrow, making her despise the Sun God.

Since that day, Apollo and Eros had never been the best of friends. The Gods, immortal beings that they were, never forgot; and knew how to hold a grudge. Therefore, the Love God felt that Apollo influenced The Oracle of Delphi against him. The prophecy was designed to hurt Eros in the end, and so it did.

Psyche, the unwed princess was cursed to never see her future husband, as he was believed to be a monster. Since the very beginning of their marriage, the woman would spend her days alone, but at night, Eros was determined to be as loving and gentle as possible. Ever since Aphrodite directed her son towards the princess, he had fallen in love with her, and so he wanted to make Psyche happy.

The two were content with their relationship. Eros did what he could, made her feel loved when they were together, and Psyche filled the God in ways he didn’t think possible. The divine creature cherished every night they spent together, even if she could not rest her soft eyes upon his godly face, yet he feared something was to come. The princess insisted she needed her sisters, and to oblige, Eros was forced to warn her about their jealousy and that she was not to be influenced by them.

As the two women visited Eros’ wife, they planted the seed of distrust and pain. The sisters were jealous of how happy Psyche was. With such strong emotions fuelling their desires, Psyche began to wonder why she could not see her husband, or if he indeed was the barbaric monster that the prophecy foretold. They helped her hide a lamp and a knife. If Eros was a serpent-like monster, he would die. Little did they know that Psyche’s loving husband was non other than the God of Love himself.

That very night, the winged God came home, they talked, laughed and loved before sleep took a hold of Eros. And like every night, he slept peacefully by her side, until something horrible happened. A burning sensation woke him up, the hot oil of her lamp had spilled over the God’s face. As he opened his eyes, he discovered Psyche’s betrayal. Aphrodite’s son found the princess looking upon him, knife in hand. Quickly, he pulled away and spread his wings. In the darkness of the night, Eros hovered over the bed. His broken voice mimicked his broken hear. **_“Love can not live without trust!”_** He cried and fled the palace.

Since that day, Eros never returned to the palace on top of the mountain. He found home in his own temple, though something was off. He grew to be tougher, more cruel, harsher than before, after all he was his father’s son. Ares’ influence was stronger now, not only in his abilities but looks. The God of Love found himself looking in a mirror, the reflection haunting him. He was not the beautiful creature he once was, and even when he had the ability to change his appearance at will, Eros’ perception of himself would always be marred, as he looked at the mirror only to see the burnt remains of the love he once felt for the woman.

In anger, Eros punched the reflective surface. He did not bleed, yet the cracked mirror fit perfectly in this particular scenario. He smirked and shrugged, his wings fluttering lightly as he took off. **_“I’m not the monster you think I am, I am the monster you wanted me to be.”_**


End file.
